China’s State Council has proposed new measures to create a “birth-friendly society” and support fertility amid China’s rapidly declining birth rate. The measures focus on strengthening childbirth and childcare services, supporting education, housing and employment, and promoting a “new culture” of marriage and childbirth, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The South China Morning Post quoted data from China’s Ministry of Education as showing that the number of kindergartens nationwide will decrease by 14,808 in 2023, bringing the total to 274,400. This is the second consecutive year of decline, which explains China’s declining birth rate.
By 2023, China’s population will decrease by more than 2 million for the second consecutive year to 1.4 billion, with only 9 million births. This is the lowest number since records began in 1949.
China now faces dual demographic challenges. As birth and fertility rates decline, the elderly population is increasing rapidly. According to Xinhua News Agency, as of the end of 2023, China’s population aged 60 and above was approximately 300 million, and is expected to exceed 400 million by 2035, and reach 500 million by 2050.
The main cause of the demographic crisis is the decades-long one-child policy, which ended in 2016. In 2021, the government further changed its policy to allow families to have up to three children.
